Scottish giants Celtic brought to an end an unwanted record on Wednesday when they overcame a deficit away from home in European competition for the first time, beating Dynamo Moscow 2-0 to progress 2-1 on aggregate in their Champions League third preliminary-round clash.
Substitute Georgios Samaras was their hero in Moscow as the Greek international’s late goal edged the former European Cup winners to within one round of making the lucrative group stages and also ended a 22 match winless streak away from Glasgow in European competition.
Celtic — for whom Australian striker Scott McDonald was their other scorer — will face a tough draw in the final qualifying round, with potential opponents being Arsenal, deposed seven-time French champions Lyon or Italian side Fiorentina, when the draw is made on Friday.
PHOTO: AP
However, their new manager Tony Mowbray, while delighted at the result in Moscow, refused to get carried away with coming through successfully his first competitive assignment since he replaced Gordon Strachan.
“I always believed we could score in Moscow, but no-one is getting carried away,” said Mowbray, who played for Celtic from 1991 to 1995. “If you get beat, then you are not a bad side, and if you win, then you are not a brilliant side.”
His Dynamo counterpart Andrei Kobelev — whose team are fifth in the league, four points adrift of leaders Kazan after 16 matches — conceded Dynamo had not played at their best.
“Today we looked tired and lacked confidence,” he said. “Celtic looked more fresh and the more experienced team tonight.”
However, there was to be no such joy for Shakhtar Donetsk — Ukraine’s first ever European club trophy winners when they won the last ever UEFA Cup title earlier this year — as they were held 0-0 by unheralded Romanian outfit Timisoara in Romania and went out on the away goals rule as the tie ended 2-2 on aggregate.
Samaras was not the only late goalscoring hero.
Sheriff — giants of Moldovan soccer, but minnows in European terms — moved to within 180 minutes of an historic appearance in the group stages as Jose Nadson struck in the fourth minute of extra-time in Prague to force a 1-1 draw with Slavia Prague.
The Moldovans progressed on the away goals rule — the tie finished 1-1 on aggregate — and wrapped up a dreadful two days for Czech soccer.
On Tuesday, Sparta Prague had seen a first leg 3-1 advantage overturned by Greek side Panathinaikos, leaving the Czechs without a representative in the Champions League.
Taiwan’s top women’s badminton doubles duo, Hsieh Pei-shan (謝沛珊) and Hung En-tzu (洪恩慈), achieved a straight-sets victory over Japan’s Kaho Osawa and Mayui Tanabe at the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Super 300 Macau Open on Sunday. The Taiwanese pair won the final 21-18, 21-12, marking the duo’s second title this year after their win at the BWF Super 300 Taipei Open in May. The match on Sunday was their first encounter with the Japanese duo, ranked No. 63 in the world. Hsieh and Hung, ranked No. 12, began the opening game well. Hung, who plays left-handed, performed strongly at both the net and the
Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko upset top-seeded Coco Gauff 6-1, 6-4 on Saturday night to reach the National Bank Open quarter-finals. “Your support was incredible,” Mboko told the crowd in French after a chorus of “Ole, Ole, Ole” chants echoed around the venue. “I’m really happy to win today ... It’s incredible. I’m so happy to beat such a great champion.” Gauff dropped to 2-3 since winning the French Open. She followed the major victory with opening losses in Berlin and Wimbledon, then overcame double-fault problems to win two three-set matches in Montreal. Gauff had five double-faults on Saturday after having 23 in
Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen on Thursday said that he is staying with the Red Bull team next year, ending months of speculation over his future. “Some people just like to stir the pot, some people just like to create drama, but, for me, it’s always been quite clear, and also for next year,” the four-time champion said ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix. “I’m discussing with the team already the plans — the things that we want to change for next year, so that means that I’m also staying with the team for next year,” he said. Verstappen has a contract with
Alex Michelsen on Thursday rallied for a 3-6, 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 upset victory over third-seeded Lorenzo Musetti in the men’s singles, converting his seventh match point to reach the fourth round of the Canadian Open. Michelsen reached the last 16 of a Masters 1000 for the first time with his second win over a top-10 player in eight attempts. The 20-year-old American survived nearly 50 unforced errors and converted just two of nine break chances, but it was enough to vanquish Italy’s Musetti, a two-time Grand Slam semi-finalist ranked 10th in the world. “It feels really good,” the 26th-ranked Michelsen said. “I’ve put
RSS